Amped for the rampAplauso para la rampa

Amped for the ramp

Story and photos by Mónica Barnkow

Take a hike.

Or a stroll, or a swing.

The ribbon-cutting.Photo: NYC Parks/Daniel Avila

That was the message from Parks Department officials at the opening of the newly constructed “Manhattan Waterfront Greenway Accessible Ramp,” which links Dyckman Street to the Hudson River Greenway path.

After three years of construction, the ramp at the north end of Fort Washington Park will now provide a more direct and ADA-compliant pathway – and offer waterfront access to people with disabilities, parents with strollers, pedestrians, joggers and cyclists pedestrians and bike riders.

“It was a tough project, but it came up beautiful,” said Daniel Mercado, Northern Manhattan Parks Manager, who explained that construction had been challenging from the beginning given the elevated slope of 150 feet.The new 1100-foot-long, switch-back ramp includes new lighting, railings and retaining walls, pavement markings and signage, and numerous trees and plantings.

Cyclists now have a direct route to travel from Dyckman Street all the way to Battery Park, along a bike lane that is one of the busiest in the country. And joggers, walkers and pedestrians of all physical capacities have a clear path to the waterfront – and the opportunity to take in the panoramic views of the George Washington Bridge and the Palisades.

The ramp also represents the last major link in the greenway on the west side, connecting the most northern parts of Manhattan with the most southern, and linking Inwood to the Bronx.

“It opens a whole world to those that are disabled,” he said during the late October ceremony. “Access is key.”

“Bikers, hikers and people of all abilities will be able to reach the trail,” added Borough President Gale Brewer, who has served as a vocal advocate for greater preservation of the borough’s green spaces. “The views are just beautiful.”

Also present were Congressman Charles Rangel; Councilmember Mark Levine, who is also Chair of the Council’s Parks Committee; Assemblymember Guillermo Linares; Councilmember Ydanis Rodríguez; and Commissioner of the Mayor’s Office of People with Disabilities Victor Calise.

The project also included other improvements made in Inwood Hill Park across Dyckman Street, and was funded with a $4.2 million federal highway grant administered by the state and $2.9 million in mayoral funds via PlaNYC.

Cyclists now have a direct route to travel from Dyckman Street all the way to Battery Park.

“It is a secret treasure that we have,” said Rodríguez, noting that, in addition to the ramp, there was a new city funding allocation of $8 million for the construction of a pier by La Marina Restaurant. The new pier, said Rodríguez, might come to mean that Hudson Valley purveyors could reach Northern Manhattan consumers directly with farm-fresh goods.

“We want farmers of the Hudson Valley to bring in their produce,” he said.

Levine heralded the end of limited waterfront access and the enhanced opportunities for Northern Manhattan in future city planning.

“Today is about celebrating this extraordinary accomplishment,” he said.

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